The first House Tour I ever contributed to Apartment Therapy, four years ago, was Ashley's 500 square foot studio in Miracle Mile. She had a budding new fashion company and was working hard to get her brand off the ground. Fast forward a few years, and she's moved into this incredible downtown loft, just two blocks from her company's office. Her home is a livable artist gallery. Its high pitched ceilings and lofted nooks offer plenty of room to entertain and show off her fun art collection.

Ashley's boyfriend, James Haunt, created the custom wall mural over their outdoor inspired sitting area. Ashley also installed a collaborated art project, and collected pieces that keep your eyes bouncing from room to room. My favorite space is the dining room, where she's created a very intimate setting under soft light around a huge communal table. By keeping her home playful and creative, she will have plenty of room to add more or change it up when she sees fit.

Favorite Element: The arched windows. When you think window, you think square. I love that they come from floor to chest height, and the brickwork around the border of them. Also, the massive amount of bricks that encompasses the apartment — the walls are 17 feet high of solid brick, which I think comes off very industrialized in the most gorgeous way.

What Friends Say: "Dope" and it reminds them of an art gallery.

They love to lounge out on the tree stumps with the felt rock rug — they say it feels like an indoor forest (which was my goal so I'm stoked).

Proudest DIY: A TON of my place is D.I.Y., I get into a lot of home projects, from the artwork to the lighting… the proudest on my boyfriend's behalf is massive lips painting he created on the living room wall (www.jameshaunt.com). My personal proudest D.I.Y. is my sofa…I designed it and had it custom-made.

Biggest Indulgence: The spiral staircase. Even though to some they may be outdated or overrated, ever since I was a kid all I wanted was a spiral staircase in my dream home. When I saw this place and the staircase, I became immediately connected to it. When I walk up and down it sometimes I think about how what I envisioned for so long became my reality, so it's pretty special to me in that aspect.

Best Advice: Do research…

When some people see the place they think I spent a ton of money on the design and furniture, which is totally not the case. A majority of my things were bought wholesale, or were reduced-price floor models, or from Black Friday sales, or were D.I.Y., or I did a lot of research in finding certain things at their lowest price. Beauty elevates your mind. I think you should surround yourself with beautiful things… but do your research so that it's all within budget.